Giant Silk Moths draw crowds to UEL Visual Arts showcase

Wednesday 2 June 2010

Newham Recorder

Photograph: Derrick Wess

‘The traditional end of year exhibition which showcases the work of graduating students across all of the Visual Arts disciplines at the University of East London has been given an additional buzz this year, thanks to an installation by student Joanna Tidey which features a collection of Giant Silk moths.

Along with an enormously diverse range of work including contributions in Fine Art, Photography, Graphic Design, Printed Textile Design, Animation, Printmaking and Illustration; Joanna is exhibiting a piece incorporating over eighty Atlas, African Moon, Emperor Gum and American Oak Silk moths. Some of these were brought in as fully-fledged moths with others emerging from their cocoons during the setting up of the installation itself. Joanna personally collected the majority of moths and cocoons from Stratford Upon Avon Butterfly Farm.

Joanna says of the installation: “My work touches on how aesthetics evoke emotions. Butterflies and moths are a prime example of this: Butterflies are stereotyped into being a thing of beauty, with their brightly coloured and patterned wings, conjuring up the happiness of warm summer days. However moths due to their dull muted colours and night flight brings up childhood fears. Some species of butterflies however fly by dusk and some species of moth by day and are as colourful as any of the brightest butterflies”.’ (Newham Recorder, 02/06/10)

Letters and Documentation-